Mercury Bay
Coordinates: 36 ° 47 ′ 0 ″ S , 175 ° 48 ′ 0 ″ E
The Mercury Bay is a large V-shaped bay on the eastern Pacific coast of the Coromandel Peninsula in New Zealand . The mouth of the bay is about 10 km wide and about 10 km deep.
In the middle of the bay the bay narrows to a narrow passage, behind it the Whitianga Harbor , a natural harbor with several arms, which extends a further 6 km into the country. The municipality of Whitianga lies on the north side of the narrow point . A ferry crosses the narrows to Cooks Beach . Other places around the bay are Kaimarama and Coroglen .
The New Zealand State Highway 25 runs around the bay and Whitianga. There are several small islets to the north and south of the estuary. The Mercury Islands are over 6 miles to the north.
Several small rivers flow into the bay that have their catchment area in the Coromandel Range , including the Mahakirau and Kaimarama Rivers, Ounuora, Waiwara, Kapowai and Whanuakite Rivers.
The bay is appreciated by sport fishermen, so marlin can be caught here. There is also a yacht club in the bay, the Mercury Bay Yacht Club , which was the challenger in New Zealand's first America's Cup Challenge in 1988 .
Cooks Beach is located on the southwestern shore of the outer part of the bay . A stone pedestal commemorates the landing of James Cook and his observation of the passage of Mercury .
Web links
- Website with visitor information
- New Zealand Travel Atlas . Wise Maps, Auckland. ISBN 0-908794-47-9 .